1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed generally to an offset accessory mount and an offset accessory mounting clamp. More specifically, the present invention is directed to an offset accessory mount and an offset accessory mounting clamp that, when installed on an accessory rail of a handgun or other firearm, provides offset mounting of an accessory such that the accessory is not centered along a central axis of the accessory rail, but is offset some distance away from the central axis of the accessory rail.
2. Description of Related Art
A large variety of accessories have been developed, which may be mounted to a handgun, rifle, carbine, submachine gun, shotgun, or other firearm, tool, or device. Accessories, such as lights, lasers, or other target illuminators, fire control devices, sights, scopes, night vision devices, mounts, handgrips, bipods, and other specially designed accessories have been developed to be mounted to a variety of firearms, tools, or devices via an accessory mount, such as, for example, a Picatinny rail.
The Picatinny rail is a generally wedge shaped, or dovetailed feature used on some firearms, tools, or other devices in order to provide a standardized accessory mounting platform. The standard for the Picatinny rail was first published by the Picatinny Arsenal in 1913, and thus carries the official U.S. Government designation MIL-STD-1913.
The inclusion of a Picatinny or other proprietary or nonproprietary rails on firearms has become quite common and accessory rails are now offered on virtually every type of firearm, from rifles, to shotguns, to handguns. Various lengths of accessory rails are also available to be coupled to firearms in various locations, and in some cases, firearms grips or forearms are available with accessory rails included on all sides.
Using an accessory rail system, a given accessory may be mounted to a variety of firearms or firearms platforms. Likewise, if a particular firearm includes an accessory rail, a variety of accessories may be interchangeably mounted to the firearm.
The interchangeability of accessories is of particular importance to military and law enforcement personnel attached to special operations units, as this allows a single firearm to be reconfigured to meet certain mission specific needs.
One accessory that is becoming rather ubiquitous is a handgun mounted light. Present handgun mounted lights typically attach to a Picatinny or other similar dovetail-type accessory rail formed or mounted on the dust cover portion of the frame of the handgun forward of the trigger guard. These handgun mounted lights are centered along the bore axis of the handgun.